


Coffee Caramel Flan

by emotionalcello



Series: Emocel's Fictober 2019 [1]
Category: DCU (Comics), Red Hood and the Outlaws (Comics), Red Robin (Comics)
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Powers, Angst, Fictober 2019, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-04
Updated: 2019-10-04
Packaged: 2020-11-23 21:10:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,104
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20896169
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/emotionalcello/pseuds/emotionalcello
Summary: For Fictober event. Prompt 25. “I could really eat something.”Tim is sick and became an even pickier eater. Jason is determined to make Tim eat. But, of course, things aren't as simple as that.





	Coffee Caramel Flan

**Author's Note:**

> ahahaha fictober
> 
> enjoy?

“Can’t you just eat a spoonful?”

“How about no.”

“Oh c’mon. I’m literally running out of food recipes.”

“I can’t today.”

“What is it? Too bland? Too salty?”

“Just drop it, Jason,” Tim finally snapped, his eyes look apologetic before he looks away.

The room fell quiet, though it never really is. The news has been playing all night long from their upstairs neighbor, and a recording of 60’s retro music quietly hums from the room next door. The fan on top of them whines as they blow a barely-there wind, signs of old age. Their apartment is as tidy as a dead beat one can. Random stuff for the coming garage sale are tidily packed but taking the corners to resides. It’s not much, but it’s home sweet home.

Days like these are often for Jason. Especially when Tim is sick, he’s a picky eater, just like now.

“What about some flan with coffee caramel, you liked those,” Jason attempt to coax Tim to eat one last time. When the small frame finally turns towards him, Jason felt like a medal of honor is blessed upon him.

“I thought the dishes are a bitch, so you only make those once a month,” Tim whispered sheepishly, hiding half of his face under the thin wool blanket.

The skin above Tim’s bony his joints is blooming red, as well as his sickly nose and teary eyes. Tim has never been this sick before, but then again, there are times where Jason had thought so too and Tim always healed. There’s no need to worry, Jason said to himself over and over again. He can take care of Tim, he’s the only one who can.

“I’m desperate,” Jason says to the empty air. Blinking his haze away, he looks back to Tim who knits his eyebrows together, “At this point, I’m ready to make anything as long as you eat and get well soon.”

The little 18-year-old melts, and whenever Jason sees Tim that way, he fell in love all over again.

“I love you, Jason,” Tim says as he sits up and lands a kiss on Jason’s cheek, not wanting to pass the cold.

Jason frames the heart-shaped face in his calloused hands. Tim’s pretty face graced with that pretty smile, it’s almost sinful how Jason is allowed to touch him.

Never a day passed by that Jason doesn’t feel blessed that Tim’s here, that Tim chooses to stay with him.

“I love you too, Timmy.”

++++

“How’s your runaway?”

“Tim’s not running from home. His parents knew exactly where he is and my address, and never bother to pick him up,” Jason put a cigarette between his lips and open his hand to his nosy friend to give his lighter back.

After lighting up his own, Roy hands it. “Gotta admit, I didn’t expect Tim to last long staying in your place for...” Roy drags in, and huffs a white puff of some to the warm sunset sky how long has it been?”

“... Six months,” Jason said after puffing the lit cigarette and takes a long drag from the filter.

“Dang, he can live without his golden toilet?”

Jason smacked the back of his redhead, “Shut up, he’s tougher than you think.”

As he smacked Roy’s head, his image seems to blur. He thought it’s the smoke, but it seems to disappear, or maybe the sun, but it’s cloudy right now. Whatever caused it, when focus came back, Roy has a different demeanor.

“Sure, _your_ Tim is.”

“The fuck is that suppose to mean?”

Roy smirks and pushes the wall with his back, “You know what I meant, coo-coo brain. I’ll see you tomorrow when you’re better.” The redhead disappears around the corner leafing ribbons of white from the burning cig.

Jason doesn’t let what Roy said get to him. Cigarettes help. After the third one is finished, he goes back to kitchen duty.

+++++

“Tim? I’m home!” Jason declared as he locks the door behind him. When he steps in, the room is empty.

Tim is not in the kitchen or lounging on the sofa, not even in his bed where he’s supposed to be resting, and there’s no voice in the shower.

Before he starts to panic, his eyes catch a piece of paper by the nightstand.

‘Starting to miss my phone. I’ll be back in a flash. And don’t worry! I feel better :)’

Relief wash over him and the tension on his shoulder melts away. Some of it at least. He can’t believe how much Tim’s presence influenced him in these past few months. The sun is still out and he doesn’t know when Tim left and how long has it been since he did.

His therapist says it’s okay to feel on edge for little things. That there is nothing as such, and he can always act on it as long as it makes his restlessness goes down.

The knock on his neighbor’s door is a bit harder. Miss Mary has a hearing problem, hence why her 60’s music always sounds too loud. It never bothered Jason though, sometimes Jason and Tim even danced to it.

“Miss Mary?” Jason called when he hears no steps and only a sound of sax from a recorder.

After a few seconds, the door opens, a lady with big cloudy green eyes looks up at him from the little opening of the door. The chains hold the door to a certain gap.

“Oh, Jason sweetie,” she melted into a smile, putting tension on her sagging skin. She closed the door, undoing the chain and opens the door wide, “How can I help you? Would you like to come in?”

“It’s not necessary Mary, I just want to ask if Tim went out.”

“That boy? Yes, he told me you’ll come. Told you not to worry,” Mary slaps him on the biceps, “Is he okay? Where are his parents?”

“Don’t worry, he just has a bit of cold.”

“My eyes might be bad, but that boy is as healthy as a horse! What are you talking about?”

“You’re right Mary.”

Jason jumps with hairs standing up.

Tim giggles triumphantly from behind him.

“Jesus Tim, scared the bones outta me. Got your phone?” Tim lifts his phone up. “What did your parents say when they see you?”

“Didn’t say anything because I didn’t see them. Only the maid is there.” Tim shrugs.

“Where are they? How can parents not be home?” Miss Mary asked.

Tim and Jason look at each other before Tim finally reservedly smiles, “They’re out of town for work.”

“When will your parents be back honey?”

“They won’t be back for a long time.”

“Oh, you must be lonely.”

“No, I’m not. I got Jason with me.” Tim steps closer and links his arm around Jason’s waist and leans his pretty little head on Jason’s shoulder. Suddenly a volcano burst inside his chest and a bunch of hearts geyser out of it.

“Oh, aren’t you the sweetest!” Mary smacks Jason’s bicep again. It’s something Mary does, Jason is whatever about it.

Jason put his arm around Tim’s and squeeze firmly feeling the chill on Tim’s damp cloths and Tim’s warm hand on his back.

“Alright, thanks Mary, I’m gonna take Tim to bed now, good evening.”

“You too love!” and she closes the door.

“Wait, to bed? The sun is still up!” Tim whined.

“You’re warmer than yesterday.”

“Really? But I feel totally fine!”

“You’re still sick, and did you eat the lunch I left?”

Tim looks away guiltily, and Jason sighed, “I’ll make you some chicken soup, it’ll be easy to eat.”

“Yeah, I think I could eat that.” Tim lets go of his hand and looks at Jason.

There’s a coldness in his eyes, never before that Jason sees him like that, it chills him to the bone. Not quite in anger, but the rapid change sends shivers down crawling at the back of his neck. It still looks like Tim, but Jason doesn’t know this part of him, and Jason’s not sure what to make out of it.

“I’m not sick, I’m not your mom.”

It feels like that’s the last thing Jason remembers that day. The morning after, Jason wakes up without Tim, and no note left behind.

+++++

Jason tried Tim’s phone but there’s no reply. Jason tried to wait a day but Tim hasn’t come back still. Two days passed by, Tim must’ve been back to his house. But then again, Jason knows Tim, he’d rather die than goes back there. What does that make Jason that Tim would rather go back to his parents than talk things out with Jason?

Last time Jason meets with Tim’s parents ended up with a restraining order. No, not on Jason, but on Tim’s parents. Long story. Now, Jason is in front of the Drake’s resident with no shame or anger stopping him.

The first one to show is Mr. Drake, he looks nothing like Tim. His face looks just as long as his neck and just too narrow. Under his dark green robe is a white and blue pajamas, seems like Jason just disturbed his break time.

“You,” the old man spat, “What do you want?”

Jason lets his face twitch, but not show his distaste, “Tim, is he here?”

“What are you talking about? Tim is-”

“Honey,” called a woman from the doorstep, she too is in a robe. A blue satin one that reaches her mid-calf and her hand clench above her heart.

She approaches with a slow and careful pace, “Jason, Tim is sick,” she says the most obvious thing with caution.

“Yes! I was taking care of him in my apartment and then he just vanished. Did he come here? Is he still sick? Do you care about him now after he’s sick to death?” Jason pointedly glares at the old man who glares back at the same intensity.

“See here you lunatic-”

“Jack!” Mrs. Drake scolds, and Mister Drake glares at her too, but a single shake of the head from her subdues him. “Tim is out buying groceries. Wait here Jason, I’ll call him,” she said then promptly walks inside her house, so does Mister Drake after giving Jason a stink eye.

Then what’s left is Jason leaning onto the gate. Looking at the road and the residential area, makes Jason's skin crawl. This place gave him unpleasant memories.

He waited until the sky is getting dark. While he waits, his mind rotates to the possibilities that the Drake might’ve been lying to him. Well color him with shit, ain’t he dumb.

Just as he’s about to grab a rock and throw it to one of the windows, a white van parked right in front of the Drake’s sidewalk. A bunch of men came out of the van’s sliding door, wearing high-collared all whites like nurses. One of them grabbed Jason’s by the arm, and it shocked Jason when he couldn’t yank his arm away.

“Let go of me!” Jason growled, but none of the men responded. The one on him is trying to subdue him while the other is carefully approaching.

“Who the fuck are you guys? Get away from me!” Jason screams this time, trying to desperately run away. The nurse pulls him with a force that throws him off balance, and his arms quickly locked behind him.

“ARGH!” Jason screamed as a sharp pain shoot from the back of his neck. His blurry vision catches one of the nurses with a syringe.

As he looks up, Janet and Jack Drake are looking down from one of the windows. Even so, as Jason’s consciousness slips away, his last wish was to see Tim popped into view in one of those windows.

Tim doesn’t.

+++++++

Jason woke up wearing a baby blue shirt and matching knee-length shorts. Only after a few seconds staring at it that he recognizes it’s a patient's uniform. He was about to run away if the familiar woman isn’t the second thing he sees.

“Wh- Miss Mary? What... what are you doing here?”

Miss Mary serves her usual kind smile. Like the room, her clothes are white and clean. Tidy like it’s just been ironed and proper like an office worker. She wears an id card on her shirt’s pocket on her right. ‘Marilyn Pepper. Head Nurse’.

Jason looks around, it doesn’t look like a hospital. Beside his bed is another bed, and besides that is a lot more beds in this one big room tidily rowed with two-meter space from each other.

“Jason, I’m going to tell you something you might not believe,” Miss Mary says softly as she sits down on the edge of Jason’s bed. “This is a mental institution, and you’ve been here for a few years now.”

Her words punch the air out of Jason’s lungs. His head shakes as he starts to feel uneasy in his own skin.

“You’re... no, I was in my apartment yesterday, I was... I was with Tim!” Jason jumps out of his bed, “I don’t have time for this, I’m leaving,” then he storms out of the room.

The halls seem like it goes on and on, both ended with a double door. The place is too clean for comfort, too sterile to even possibly exist. A few nurses walking back and forth with a writing board on their hands. Their eyes straight ahead as they walk, as if Jason is not there.

In the end, he chooses one door and proceeds cautiously. A tap on his shoulder makes him turn vehemently. A young nurse with a familiar face is taken back as she moves her hand away. Jason doesn’t know who she is, only the gut feeling that he does.

“Yo, Jason you okay?” the blonde tips her head to the side.

Her voice sends chills down his spine and Jason runs away. She tried to stop him, but he ran away.

He feels like a mouse in a maze with no way out. Trapped upon unfamiliar hallways that never ends. his head starts to feel light. The beating of his heart pumps with rapid breathing.

Another door feels like the other, but this one doesn’t lead him to another hallway. It’s a large room with sofas, chess tables and people doing their own thing. The soft retro music of the ’60s hits him the most, for a blink there he can see his apartment with this music played behind the wall. The right side of the wall is all glass and looks out to a green grass flooring with swings and a mighty tree in the middle where a few people sit by a plaid carpet.

It feels like the room spins around. A few eyes are on him before they go one with their business. Most of them are using the same clothes as Jason.

This is, a mental institute, that means they’re patients, and that means so does Jason? But he’s not crazy... he’s not! He doesn’t belong here.

“Whoa whoa whoa you’re like a merry go round there, stop spinning,” says a familiar voice. A pair of hand hed his shoulder and in front of him is Roy, wearing the same uniform as his.

“Okay, you know where you are?” Roy asked.

“Miss... Miss Mary said it’s a mental institute,” Jason says meekly, holding onto Roy, the last thread he knows is real.

“That’s right, let’s go outside okay?” Roy wraps an arm around his shoulders and Jason is disarray enough to follow.

The breeze smells of the cold air of spring. It cools down his frayed senses enough to makes sense that some things don’t. There’s a wooden chair where some people sit together and talk, two grown adults are by the swings, laughing like toddlers. The pretty and clean place is surrounded by a tall metal fence. Thick and sturdy as star-shaped spikes rowed at the tip. From the gap between the fence, he can see the city that seems on the lower ground and further away from where he is.

“Am I dreaming?” Jason steps closer to the gate, reaching towards the faraway city that has been his home.

“Nah, this’ pretty real,” Roy replied nonchalantly. “Do you remember when you get here?”

“I think I was taken yesterday. Tim went missing so I came to his house, just to see if he’s there and nothing happens. Then I guess his parents called the nurses.”

“Ok, the nurses part was right. You somehow escaped, you went missing for a while. But you’ve been in this institution for –get ready– five years.”

Jason whips around with blown wide eyes, “You’re fucking insane!”

“Well, we both are, that’s why we’re here.”

“But I didn’t do anything!” Jason screamed, all the people in the yard looks at him and some even stand up as they inch away. “Tim is sick, he needs me! If I’m not there he could’ve... he could’ve died, I can’t handle that again.”

Roy shifts his eyes to the glass door and around before walking cautiously towards Jason, “Okay, calm down buddy.”

“No!” Jason storms past Roy.

“Jason just please wait a minute!” Roy holds on to Jason’s wrist but Jason easily brushed him off.

Behind the glass door is darker than the outside. Just before Jason opened the glass door, he takes a look at himself in the dark glass door that shows every detail of his face there. It’s almost like Jason is seeing someone else through the glass. He hated how he knows it him, the age that does a number to his face, and cruelly makes him look like the father he resents.

He steps even closer, putting his finger on the glass and trace all the points on his face that he detested. How deep his eyes sunken into the sockets on his skull. The fine lines beginning to form under his eyes. Chapped lips that split apart so bad that it’s slightly bleeding. Has it really been 5 years? Because he looked like time passes way beyond that. The longer he stares onto his reflection, the more his anger shimmers down and replaced with terror.

He looked just like his sickly mother before she died. It’s still a mystery why she never got better. Jason did everything right. When Tim fell sick, the dread of his mother’s death haunts him again. Mistakes of the past are a teacher for your future, but Jason’s past can’t teach him anything if Jason doesn’t know what he did wrong. All he knew was he doesn’t want to make the same mistake, to let Tim have the same fate as his mother because of his failure.

“Oh, that’s what happened,” Jason whispered under his breath.

He sees Roy coming from behind him at the corner of his eyes, but he can’t look away from his face just yet. He tried to remember what he did to Tim. What made him ended up here.

The glass door slides open, the first one to show is Miss Mary, then in front of Jason, is Tim.

Now as tall as him. His body filled up a little since he last remembers and a face that’s just as youthful as he was 5 years ago. His hair is trimmed and let down, not as long but the short hair makes him look more mature than the boyish teen Jason remembered. He’s wearing fit ankle-length trousers with patterned baby blue button-up with oxford shoes. Unlike the skater boy Tim Jason used to.

Somehow, seeing Tim in front of him forces the reality down his throat.

“Jason, are you okay?” Tim asked with worried doe eyes. It’s unreal to hear Tim’s voice sounds lower now, but what breaks Jason the most is how Tim is also cautious of him.

“What did I do to you?” Jason’s question drops the temperature a few degrees. He can see Tim shrunk his shoulder as he slightly leans back.

“Please tell me, Tim,” Jason begged, “Don’t I deserve that?”

“No!” Tim scolds, freezing Jason on the spot, “You deserve to be well and happy and if forgetting what happened is all that it takes then... then it’s fine.”

Tim’s eyes glassed over with tears and he wipes them before they escape.

“How can I learn from my mistake if I don’t know what that mistake is? I need you to tell me, Tim... Timmy.” Jason called his nickname and Tim just look away, breaking his heart into shards, “Why are you so scared of me?”

Tim finally looks up, with gritted teeth and eyebrows digging close to his eyes, “I’m not! I just want you back, Jason. I want to wake up next to you again, and have your coffee and eat your cooking when you didn’t think I’m sick! I missed you! And If forgetting what happened is all it takes...” Tim’s voice trails to nothing, this time his tears free fall down to his jaw.

Jason for once left breathless and ashamed, seeing Tim in tears, he never makes him cry like this. But in the 5 years that left his memory, how many have those tears had shed behind him.

“You’ll remember Jason, this isn’t the first time this happened. You always prefer me to be honest, so, I have to tell you, this is the longest memory loss episode, hence I needed Tim to come.” Miss Mary comforted.

“Why did I forget?”

“We still don’t know. You have triggers whenever you’re left alone or when you touched someone that’s a bit warmer than usual, but how bad it affects you can lead to memory loss.”

Tim looks reluctant, but Miss Marry rubs his back, “It’s okay Tim, he’s getting better, it needs to be done.”

Then Tim finally nods, looking up to Jason and slip his arms between Jason’s torso and wrap him into a clinging hug. Jason immediately hugs him back. Just yesterday he hugged this body, but it felt like it’s been so long since he does.

Tim hold his hand and pull him towards the tree, “This is our favorite spot.” Then he sits down, which Jason follows suit. The yard looks a bit empty now. Whatever Jason did in the past, the patients seem to be wary of them. Fun.

“You’ve come here quite often then huh?” Jason mused.

“Yeah, to visit you.”

“Did you put me here?”

“No, you did.”

Jason smiled at himself, “Good.” Whatever insanity he was drowned in, he’s glad he had the sanity to put himself here.

Jason and Tim sitting under the tree’s shade, suddenly lost for words.

“I’m sorry,” Jason said after a long pause.

“Don’t be. None of this is your fault.”

“Will you tell me what I did to you now?”

Tim pursed his lips, playing with his fingers before he finally admits, “You lock me in your room, thinking I was sick. At one point you overdose me with cold medicine.”

The cold air blows but it’s not the reason why Jason has chills on his skin. Suddenly feeling like he shouldn’t be this close to Tim. As he was about to scoot away, Tim lay his head on his shoulder.

“Don’t,” he silently scold.

“What?”

“You’re not broken, just troubled.”

Jason knows that but it hurts that he hears it, but it helps that Tim’s here. How many times has this happened. How many times Tim have to come here for Jason.

“I’m a danger to you.”

“You’ve been getting better, I swear, and I’m so proud of you.” Tim retracts, putting his hands on each of Jason’s face.

It takes his breath away how pretty when Tim smiles. Tim leans closer and presses his lips on his. Chaste and gentle, it powers Jason’s heart to shoot out of his rib cage. Tim stands on his knees, and tuck Jason’s head to the crook of his neck, and wrap his shoulder. Jason holds onto the back of Tim’s waist and they hold onto each other like they’ve finally found each other.

“I’m going to get better,” Jason declared to the sky above and Tim in his arms, as a reminder to where he’ll return.

“I know baby,” Tim kisses the root of his hair. “Hey, I’m hungry.”

Jason smiled, “Am I really hearing you say that or is that my fucked up brain?”

“I’m really hungry!” Tim chuckled.

“I can make you something, I remember this place have a kitchen I can borrow. Want some eggs? I’ll make you coffee caramel flan if you do the dishes.”

“For those flans? Anything.”

**Author's Note:**

> what do you think?  
Tell me if I miss something in the tags
> 
> [find me on tumblr!](https://emotionalcello-makefanfics.tumblr.com/)


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